The Rotary Club of Ann Arbor is a well-known service club for service-minded individuals in Ann Arbor. Service to others and our community has been our mission since the club was founded in 1916.
The Rotary Club of Ann Arbor also supports the global effort to eradicate polio and malaria worldwide through Rotary International’s End Polio Now and Rotarian Malaria Partners programs. Our membership now stands at more than 250 members. We are one of the largest Rotary clubs in the state of Michigan and among the 35,000 Rotary clubs worldwide.
To get a better feel for our club and what we’re up to, check out our brochure and Annual Report 2020-2021.
Archival content on our club can be found on our old website annarborrotary.org.
More about the Rotary Club of Ann Arbor
Rotary Mottos
“Service Above Self” and “One Profits Most Who Serves Best”
A One-Sentence Definition of Rotary
An organization of service-minded individuals united worldwide, who provide humanitarian service, encourage high ethical standards in all vocations and help build goodwill and peace in the world.
The Mission Statement for Rotary International
“Together, we see a world where people unite and take action to create lasting change — across the globe, in our communities, and in ourselves.”
The Object of Rotary
The object of Rotary is to encourage and foster the ideal of service as a basis of worthy enterprise and, in particular, to encourage and foster:
- The development of acquaintance as an opportunity for service;
- High ethical standards in business and professions; the recognition of the worthiness of all useful occupations; and the dignifying by each Rotarian’s occupation as an opportunity to serve society;
- The application of the ideal of service in every Rotarian’s personal, business, and community life;
- The advancement of international understanding, goodwill, and peace through a world of fellowship of business and professional persons united in the ideal of service.
Rotary’s Four-Way Test
Of the things we think, say or do:
- Is it the TRUTH?
- Is it FAIR to all concerned?
- Will it build GOODWILL and BETTER FRIENDSHIPS?
- Will it be BENEFICIAL to all concerned?
The Five Avenues of Service
Club Service, Vocational Service, Community Service, Youth Service, and International Service are Rotary’s philosophical cornerstones and the foundation of club activity.
Membership
Fifteen charter members founded our Club in 1916, only 11 years after the first Rotary Club was organized in Chicago. Our membership now stands at over 250 members. We are one of 35,000 Rotary clubs worldwide with over 1.2 million members.
What Our Club Does (Annual Report and Brochure)
To get a better feel for our club and what we’ve been doing lately, check out our brochure and 2022-2023 Annual-Report.
Meetings
Our meetings are held every* Wednesday afternoon (there are no meetings the week of Art Fair and the weeks of Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s). We are currently hosting our meetings in a hybrid format (on Zoom and in person) until further notice. The in-person meeting takes place in the Anderson Room of the University of Michigan Union. The schedule is as follows:
- 12:oo pm: Casual social time and lunch
- 12:30 pm: Business portion of the meeting (includes inspirational thought, introduction of guests and visiting Rotarians, songs, and reports from the President and committees on projects and programs).
- 1:00 pm: Weekly guest speaker presentation (dynamic speakers include world-renowned researchers, business leaders, civic leaders, and many others)
- 1:30 pm: Program concludes
Check our calendar for all upcoming meetings, and click here for more details about the location and format of our meetings, including the Zoom link.
Attendance
Our Club recognizes that Rotarians are busy people, so we’ve created lots of ways to be active in Rotary. Attending Club meetings is part of participation, and so is volunteering on a project, working on club administration and leadership, or joining social activities. Traveling Rotarians are urged to visit one of the 35,000 Rotary clubs worldwide, a special privilege of Rotary membership! Though we have no attendance requirements, we want you to be engaged in whatever ways you can be.
Cost
Club dues are billed in the Spring and a Community Services Assessment of $200 is billed in December of each year.
In 1986, our 70th Anniversary, the club established an endowment fund with $70,000 raised as the initial corpus. As of June 30, 2019, assets and bequests totaled over $2,000,000. The purpose of the endowment is to improve the quality of life in the Ann Arbor area by providing funds to community groups and scholarships to deserving students.
Governance & Committees
Every member is encouraged to participate in one of our many committees and initiatives. Committees include, but are not limited to, Community Service, International Service, Vocational Service, Program, mentoring through the STRIVE program, Reading and Tutoring, Environmental Action Group (EAG), Peace, Anti-Racism (ARC), Doers of Good Service (DOGS), Attendance/Inspiration, Music, Membership Development, Rotaract, Special Events, Public Image, Website, Bowling, and Social. Engagement in committees is a wonderful way to build fellowship and develop skills. The club elects four officers (president, vice- president, secretary, treasurer) annually. The immediate past president also serves on the Board. The vice-president serves as president in the succeeding year. Our current roster of leaders in the club and their email addresses can be found here: 2024-2025 RCAA Club Leadership.
Social Events
Throughout the year, members enjoy special activities and social gatherings arranged by the club. Some examples of previous social events include an executive briefing tour of downtown Detroit, a picnic to launch fundraising for the Rotary Centennial Accessible Playground at Gallup Park, a tour of Underground Railroad sites in Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti, a festive luncheon meeting with a Big Band from a local high school. We also gather on a regular basis, including regular social hours, to build fellowship and friendships within our membership. Each opportunity provides time for members to get to know each other better and experience a new aspect of our community.
